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Monday, November 24, 2008

Quiet Strength

Quiet Strength5x7 Oil on Canvas Panel

Just a few days before we went to the doctor, I took a picture of my youngest daughter in the north light so I could do a head study.

Two days after this painting, I took her to the doctor about some hip pain. After some X-rays and a visit to the pediatric orthopedic center, we were sent to the oncology department to have several tests done. She has been through bone marrow testing, a needle biopsy of her bone tissue and several blood tests in the last week and a half. Her only real complaint is that the tape they use is too sticky and pulls her skin and arm hair.

Although she is negative for Leukemia, we still have Ewings Sarcoma and Eosinophilic Granuloma as possible diagnosis. She is the one that sits there calmly and listens quietly to what the doctors say we have to do next. Need to stick a needle in her bone? She only asks not to be awake. Need to take more blood? Please use her left arm instead of her right. When my emotions are running everywhere but calm, I look to this face and see this expression and I become strong again.